In one were to base parenting a child on this year 2004, I personally feel that it is viewed as a challenge. This challenge of trying to install only your direction towards your child will continue to get harder as the years go on. Fortunately I get the opportunity to work with children quite often and observe a variety of parenting styles. It may seem easy to say you're going to raise your child a certain way, however our world in my opinion has corrupted the true meaning of 'family'.
             We can first begin to look at the surroundings of our society; T.V, media, music, movies etc. I feel these factors are such powerful influences on our children, which makes it difficult to parent them the way we should. Of course the danger in working to influence culture is that culture can often influence us in negative ways. That's why God tells us to go into the world with wisdom and discernment (Prov. 4:23).
             Did you know that "83 percent of Americans wish the entertainment industry would voluntarily cut some of the sex and violence from television, movies and music lyrics and 87 percent of entertainment industry leaders feel violence in the mass media contributes to violence in society?" (http://www.troubledwith.com)
             I remember growing up my mother used to always ask me; "Is this (friend, movie, activity) helping you become the person God created you to be? Is it helping you grow closer to God?" We can also trace this back to the phrase WWJD or What Would Jesus Do?
             Everyday, many parents come face to face with a culture that threatens the moral and physical safety of their children. I feel that we can't open a newspaper, turn on the news, or surf the Internet without being reminded of the 'dangerous' world we live in. As parents their wish is for their children to pass on the faith, yet this becomes very difficult, yet being aware of the challenges they face helps.
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